Advent

Today is the first Sunday in Advent. I only know this because last year we started the tradition of an Advent Candle Wreath. I’m always looking for ways to add meaning to the season of Christmas (and Easter, too). I found this idea in “The Adventure of Christmas” by Lisa Whelchel. (On a side note, it's such a great book! It has festive and colorful pages with many meaningful craft and baking ideas for the Christmas season. If you have little ones, I highly recommend it.)

Advent Candle Wreath

What you’ll need

3 purple candles

1 pink candle

1 white candle

a mirror stand

any variety of evergreens, holly, pine, ornaments, bells, etc. to decorate around the candles

Arrange candles on mirror stand. Put the white candle in the center since it’s the last one lit, on Christmas Day, and represents Jesus, with the other candles in a circle around the white one. The circle represents God’s love that lasts forever, it has no beginning or end. Then add decorations as accents around the candles.

The first purple candle, the Prophesy/Hope candle, is lit on the fourth Sunday before Christmas, and represents the hope we have in Jesus.

The second purple candle, the Bethlehem/Peace candle, is lit on the third Sunday before Christmas, and represents the Prince of Peace born in Bethlehem.

The pink candle, the Shepard/Joy candle, is lit on the second Sunday before Christmas, and represents the good tidings and great joy of the Christmas story.

The final purple candle, the Angel/Love candle, is lit on the Sunday before Christmas, and represents the heavenly hosts and their glorious message.

And finally, the white candle, lit on Christmas Day, represents that love has entered our world through the birth of Jesus Christ. 

We all had fun picking out and putting together this Advent Wreath. And what a great visual reminder of the meanings behind Christmas.

Some use the Advent season to prepare their hearts for the Christmas season and maybe to find new meaning and a renewed gratitude for the gift we didn’t deserve. I came across this prayer recently in “The Valley of Vision: A Collection of Puritan Prayers and Devotions” (another awesome book!) and thought it was beautiful, timely, and worth sharing.

The Deeps

Lord Jesus,
Give me a deeper repentance,
a horror of sin,
a dread of its approach;
Help me chastely to flee it,
and jealousy to resolve that my heart shall be thine alone.

Give me a deeper trust,

that I may lose myself to find myself in thee,
the ground of my rest, the spring of my being.

Give me a deeper knowledge of thyself as Saviour, Master, Lord, and King.

Give me deeper power in private prayer,
more sweetness in thy Word,
more steadfast grip on its truth.

Give me deeper holiness in speech, thought, action,
and let me not seek moral virtue apart from thee.

Plough deep in me, great Lord, heavenly Husbandman,
that my being may be a tilled field,
the roots of grace spreading far and wide,
until thou alone art seen in me,
thy beauty golden like summer harvest,
thy fruitfulness as autumn plenty.

I have no Master but thee,
no law but thy will,
no delight but thyself,
no wealth but that thou givest,
no good but that thou blessest,
no peace but that thou bestowest.

I am nothing but that thou makest me,
I have nothing but that I receive from thee,
I can be nothing but that grace adorns me.

Quarry me deep, dear Lord, and then fill me to overflowing with living water.

 Amen.